DELTAMAGL61740.JPG
A fisherman cast his line in front of Holland Track Marina east of Knightsen. It's a well-known fact that the Delta, the biggest, most productive estuary on the West Coast, is collapsing because too much fresh water is being siphoned off. What hasn't been told is that this isn't due to a lack of regulatory mechanisms--there are plenty of state and federal statutes--the U.S. Clean Water Act, the California Environmental Protection Act, both the state and federal endangered species acts--that could be invoked, and invoked effectively. But that isn't happening, due to calculated decisions by both the Bush and Schwarzenegger administrations to not enforce water quality and endangered species laws in the Delta. There's too much at stake: Both administrations feel the water has to continue to move south, where the money and people are. August 18, 2007. Lance Iversen/The Chronicle (cq) SUBJECT 8/18/07,in BRENTWOOD. CA.
Ran on: 01-30-2008
The numbers of salmon returning to spawn are well below what fishermen expected.
Ran on: 01-30-2008
The numbers of salmon returning to spawn are well below what fishermen expected.
Ran on: 10-27-2009
Photo caption Dummy text goes here. Dummy text goes here. Dummy text goes here. Dummy text goes here. Dummy text goes here. Dummy text goes here. Dummy text goes here. Dummy text goes here.<137,1970-12-18-17-21-52,><252>###Photo: edit27_delta_PH<252>1187308800<252>The San Francisco Chronicle<252>###Live Caption:###Caption History:DELTAMAGL61740.JPG_A fisherman cast his line in front of Holland Track Marina east of Knightsen. It's a well-known fact that the Delta, the biggest, most productive estuary on the West Coast, is collapsing because too much fresh water is being siphoned off. What hasn't been told is that this isn't due to a lack of regulatory mechanisms--there are plenty of state and federal statutes--the U.S. Clean Water Act, the California Environmental Protection Act, both the state and

The sweeping legislative package to preserve the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta - and thus the water supply for about 24 million Californians - is the epitome of a compromise that makes just about everyone involved semi-pleased and semi-anxious.

What is remarkable about this deal, fine-tuned in weeks of negotiations between Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, state Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg and other key leaders, is that it did not ignite an open revolt when it was rolled out in the State Capitol on Monday. "There's never going to be complete consensus on an issue this big and with this much history," Steinberg said in a phone interview. "But we're getting close."

The grudging acceptance of this package reflects the growing concern that the health of the delta is deteriorating even as the demands on its water continue to intensify and the stresses of drought and climate change threaten to further degrade its viability.

Perhaps the most significant element of this package is the creation of a seven-member Delta Stewardship Council that would have broad authority over its dual mission: to protect the environment and to assure water delivery. Four members would be appointed by the governor, two by the Legislature and one would be chair of the Delta Protection Commission. Today, delta decisions are divided among dozens of state and federal agencies - assuring constant warfare over water allocation and an absence of vision or accountability for the big picture even with a billion-dollar investment.

On two of the most contentious issues - whether to build dams and whether to build a "junior peripheral canal" to divert fresh water around the delta for a southbound aqueduct- the deal seems to reach a reasonable compromise. Such projects can be considered, but they will have to compete with other, more environmentally friendly alternatives. Also, any public money going into dams would have to be matched by at least a 50 percent private contribution.

The bills being presented to the Legislature also would reduce statewide water consumption 20 percent by 2020, crack down on illegal diversions and manage groundwater more efficiently.

The status quo at the delta is not working for anyone. It has brought fish to the brink of extinction while urban users and agriculture try to outmaneuver each other for a precious resource.

The framework of this deal is sound. There will be further battles over details, but Steinberg and Schwarzenegger have each shown a willingness to make tough concessions on an issue that is critical to this state's future in so many ways.